Juniata sentinel and Republican. (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, October 09, 1895, Image 1
,MgElP?aMgWWlMSSa"SlllSanSaSa D. F. BGHWEIEB, THE OONBTITUTION-THE UNION AND THE ENFORCEMENT OP THE LAWS. Kdlter stad Iopr ft 1 VOL. XLIX MIFFLINTOWJS, JUNIATA COUNTY. PENNA.. WEDNESDAY. OCTOBER 9. 1895. NO. 43. CBAPTER XVI. A day liad passed two three nnc Marsden had made no sign. Nora began to hope he was wise enough to preceive that it would not be fir hi own happiness to insist on marrying a girl who was so reluctant to be his wife. After some consideration, she wrote a sensible, dignified letter to Lady Porring ton, rebutting her accusation and assur ing her that, so far from wishing to mar her brother's prosiects by holding him to his engagement, she had earnestly beggisJ him to set her free. Christmas bad gone by, to Ilea's infinite disappointment, without the presence of her favorite, Mnrsden. There was a pause in the little drama of their lives This interval was first broken by a few lines from Winton to Mrs. IKstrange, in which he asked her to fix an hour when he could see him, as he was in town for a short time, and, if she adhered to her intention of returning to Krookdale early in January, it would be his only opxr tunity of wishing her good-by. as he Iioimm to complete his business and sail for India the end of the mouth. Nora accepted this note as notice to b out of the way. and felt truly grateful tc Winton for sparing her the pain of ar encounter. Mrs. IEstrange began to form soim Idea of the truth. Though she liked Mark Winton, she thought Mursden would be a more suitable husband for Nora. He was bright and companionable, while Mark was older than his years, sobered too by a life of steady work and serious responsibility. Nora could not be so much attracted by a man too much in earnest for civil speeches or implied compliments, or any of the gallant 'rickery in which Marsden excelled who differed from and argued with her as he would with a com rade of his own sex, and to crown all, had looks to lioast of beyond a good figure and gentleman-like air. 1 Iowever, she made out very little f roo their tete-a-tete interview. Winton looked worn and gaunt, but seemed very glad to see her. and to find her alone, "lie spoke freely enough of his own affairs, of the division he had made of his uncle's bequest with the deceased's grandchild, and of his own approaching departure, of herself and her little daugh ter, in even a kindlier tone than usual; but not until he rose to take leave, after refusing her invitation to dinner, did he mention Nora. Then he asked calmly "And Miss L'Estrange; I hope she is well?" "Yes; very well." "And when does the wedding take place ?" "I am not quite se " "I thought it mus fixed for the begin nlng of February?" "l'es; ;i.t was talked of; but we do not quito k low yet." "Are you pleased with the marriage?" he asked, looking at her very searchingly. "Certainly, I am. It is a good marriage, from a worldly point of view; and then Clifford Marsden is bo utterly devoted that I think dear Nora's happiness is sure to be his first consideration." "It ought to be," very gravely. "Hut, Mrs. L'Estrange, Marsden's financial po rtion ought to be looked into carefully before the mnrrige takes place. Mars den of Evesleigli sounds like a grand al liance, but he is a good deal dipped, ol course, he may have cleared himself. Misi L'Estrange has no gnnrdian, I believe?" "No. Colonel L'Estrange, after mak ing many wills, which he destroyed, final ly died intestate; our good friend, Mr. Barton, the Colonel's solicitor, has man aged everything for us, and I have got Into the habit of looking on Lord Lor rington as an informal guardian; but he cannot, or will not, interfere now, because he, or rather Lady Dorrington, is so dis pleased with the proposed marriage." "I la! I feared so. Lady Dorrington was, I think, anxious her brother should secure Mrs. Huthven's fortune. This must be a source of annoyance to Nora I mean Miss L'Estrange who is, I sup pose, attai-hed to Marsden; he is a sort of fellow to please a girl's fancy." Ther was a tinge of bitterness in his tone. "Oh, yes, of course! Hut Nora Is no sentimentalist, you know!" "I do. She is something better. Well, good-morning, Mrs. L'Estrange." "We shall see you again, though? You will not go without saying good-by to N..ra. and ioor little Bea?" Winton hesitated. "I should like to shnke hands with Miss J.'Ksirange once more," he said slowly. "As to Bea. you must keep me posted up in your own and her doings if yon con sider me her informal guardian I shall be pleased." "You are very good yon always wen good, Mark," cried Mrs. L'Estrange, warmed out of formality. "But you ar not going away forever! India is so accessible now; you can come to and fro, and " "India is the best place for me," he In terrupted, somewhat grimly. "There 1 have work to do: here there are no ties to keep me! I shall come and say good-by before I start." lie shook hands cordial' ly and left her. .Mrs. L'Estrange hurried upstairs to re port proceedings to Nora, who was pre tending to read in her own room, where she was fond of retiring, finding the re iraiut even of her step-mother's kindly presence irksome In her present overtaxed condition of mind consumed as she was by perpetual anxiety resecting her own position, and intolerable regret for what she had lost by mere misapprehension, or, worse still, the deliberate misleading. "And Mr. Winton is to leave so soon!" she exclaimed, growing very white, as her step-mother ceased speaking. "Why does he hurry away?" "I cannot imagine! He seems anxious to get hack to bis work, and to think there is no place for him in England." Nora was silent, and Mrs. L'Estrange continued to speak, repeating Winton' kind words, volunteering to be Bea's guar dian. Suddenly she broke out, as if sh bad not heard what her step-mother had been saying: "It is cruel of Clifford to keep me wait ing so long so long for his decision. It will be five days to-morrow since he left me! And I cannot bear this horriblt anxiety! Helen! Ought I to marry him when I have such doubts such reluc tance? Am I weaker than other people, that I cannot see the right thing to do aud do it? Would Clifford really break his heart about me? What shall I do Helen? Oh, what shall I do T Khe burst into a passion of tears, which absolutely frightened her step-mother, tt whom she had scarcely ever even In he! childish days displayed such stromj motions. . - 'Iear Nora," she cried, caressing her, "if it distresses you so dreadfully, do not marry Mr. Marsden! Better face the dif ficulty now than let yourself be india solubly linked to a man you do not like- though why you do not I cannot under itand. There was a prolonged silence, while Nora's sobs subsided, and she gradually egained her self-possession. a At the Duchess of Ilminster's dowet house there was not unmixed joy on the receipt of a carefully composed lettei from Mrs. Kuthven, announcing ber en gagement to Marsden. Lady Dorrington could not make It out She was not so carried away by her eager ness for fresh betrothal as to lose sight of the probable injustice to Nora, whose proud, high-spirited letter had touched hei and, more still, had inspired her with hoies that the mischief was not irrepara ble. She hastened with Mrs. Kuthven' pistle to Lord Dorrington. "Well, my dear," said that sapient no bleman, when he hnd slowly perused it, "that brother of yours Is a clever fellow, How he manages to get rid of one wom an and secure another in the twinkling of an eye is beyond me altogether. Mrs. Uuthven is wisely vague on the subject. "Clifford's momentary engagement to Miss L'Estrange seems to have originated in misapprehension on all sides; and I feel assured that she, too, will see the wisdom of setting an unwilling fiance Tree." "Perhnps so; but I doubt if Clifford ever undertook anything against his will, unless under pressure of some tremendous necessity; and what the necessity was for his marrying Nora L bstrange I can' lot see." "Depend upon it, my lettter is at the root of this very prudent change ot front. returned her ladyship. "I feel anxious nbout Nora, however. I think I had bet ter run to town and see for myself how matters stand. You return to Chedworth to-morrow. I will explain to my aunt that I am compelled to go to town the same afternoon instead of remaining the :ouple of days I promised. It followed, of course, that my lady car ried out her plans, and, having had a short interview wth Mrs. Uuthven and found her brother was still absent at Eves leigli. she dispatched a telegram to Mrs. Estrange, whom she wished to see llone. Mrs. L'Estrange had been out early. having walked with Bea and her govern ess to a music class which that young ladv attended, and doing some shopping n her way buck. The dignified master of the honse bav- tng gone to dinner, the door was opened by the "slavery ot the estaoiisnment, ana Mrs. L'Estrange found the telegram on the drawing room table. As Nora was not there, and the mes sage boded nothing pleasant, Mrs. L'Es trange went down-stairs at once, and meeting her own maid in the hall, she told her she was obliged to go out again. In case Miss L'Estrange asked, and set forth to keen the appointment. The bell sounded more than once during the sacred hour of rest and refreshment, but the task of answering was left to the neat little house-maid, whose lot it was to serve more than one master. Nora meanwhile employed herself in her own room. She shrunk from meeting Winton alone, and he might come any day; so, while Helen was out she kept in ler special stronghold. She had been greatly disappointed that lay. The morning post had brought her nothing from Marsden; so, with a sinking heart, she had set herself to compose s letter to him. She had written "Dear Clifford," and sat looking at the words in a sort of de spair as to bow she would attack her ter rible subject, when the servant of the bouse brought her a letter, at the sight of which her heart stood still; the writing was Marsden s. "Has Mrs. L'Estrange come In?" she isked. "Yes'm, she is in the drawing-room." Nora tore open the envelope and glanced tt the contents before rushing to confide 'hem to her step-mother. "Nora," it began "I think I see the re ief in your eyes those sweet truthful yes I love so well when you read these words I give you back your promise and let you free. There is that in you, I know not what, which forbids me to sham jenerosity. I give you up, because I rnnnot help it. A tremendous necessity, t necessity I cannot explain, compels me. No words can express the agony of bit terness and humiliation it costs me to re lease you, for I love you as passionately s ever, as I did from the first, when you anconsciously cast a spell over me that has been my ruin. Yet It has been all my own fault. I do not blame yon. If I were to write forever, I could say no aiore. You never loved me, but I should lot the less have insisted on yonr keeping four promise to be my wife. Now I re lonnce you, and hope never to sea yon igain! You will give yourself to another, f course I would rather know yon were afe in your grave out of reach where lone could touch yon. So good-by! No ne will ever love yon so entirely, so ln :ensely, as I do, though I curse the hour I Irst saw you. If it be possible you should ver regret me, I would break every law, rrery bond, to come to yon. But this la nadness! Yours still utterly yours. "CLIFFORD MARSDEN." In the first infinite relief of finding her lelf free, Nora did not quite take In the Serce despair of this strange letter. Her mptilse was to rush with her great tid jigs to Helen. She flew down stairs and nto the drawing-room. Mrs. L'Estrange's irm-chair was in front of the fire and S'ora just saw, as she thought, the dark Ine of her dress at one side, as If her feet were on the fender. "Oh, Helen! dear Helen! Clifford re eases me. Thank Gou, I am free, quite freer she cried In Joyous agitation. She had scarce ottered the words when a figure started up from the chair and Winton confronted her. Nora stood still and dumb, the open let ter in her hand, feeling dazed and help less in the crushing confusion which had so suddenly overwhelmed her. "Has Marsden then released yon at our own request?" cried Winton, Im petuously, and coming forward quickly, forgetting in the supreme excitement of the moment all conventionality; while to Nora it seemed equally natural to answei with an emphatic "Yes, oh, yes! Whew is Helen? I thought she was here?" "So did I," returned Winton. recOTering iis self-possession and his reserve. "I railed to to say good-by, and I trust you will forgive my inopportune presence, my unguarded, and I fear very presumptuous, question. My sincere interest In In you? welfare must be my excuse." "You are very kind, I Oh, where Is Helen? I mnst go and look for her." Be fore Wilmot could atop her, had he beep so disposed, she. had fled. Winton gazed after her, an expression of hope and joy gradually lighting up his somber face. She was free by her own desire. Life might be worth living yetl While he stood thinking, new and glow ing views of much over which he had often puzzled suggesting themselves, the respectable Watson came in. "If you please, sir, Mrs. L'Estrange went out again, and Miss L'Estrange does pot know when she will return." "Ah! well, perhaps " he hesitated. He was dying for a few words with Nora, but it would be bad taste to intrude upon her now. "Perhaps," be continued, "I may find Mrs. L'Estrange at home to morrow. I should not like to leave with out bidding her good-by." He had nothing for it but to take hie hat and depart. Nora, greatly surprised at Helen's ab sence, could not compose heiself to do anything. She wandered to and fro from room to room, sometimes sitting down- to fall into vague reveries. She read and . re-read Marsden's lettter; its passionate despair sobered and dismayed her. What i could have happened to make him give ber up so ireely I ne was aeepiy grieveu for him. She strove to compose a letter to him in her mind, but could not com mand her ideas; all she could do and she was ashamed of the pleasure she had in doing it was to inclose the two rings Marsden had given her in a neat packet and address them to the giver later ir the evening she would write. At last Mrs. L'Estrange returned, look ing pale and tired. "Oh, Helen! Where where have you oeen?" cried Nora, when her step-mother came into the room, now only partially lighted by the glow of a good fire. "You will hardly guess! I have been with Lady Dorrington." And she pro ceded to describe the telegram and her interview. "I think Lady Dorrington is terribly if raid you are breaking your heart, Nora. She feels sure you have renounced Mr. Marsden in consequence of her letter, she is therefore quite pleased with you. But I have a wonderful piece of news. He has absolutely engaged himself to Mrs. Kuthven, and they are to be married oon." "Then that, in some way, accounts for this letter." said Nora, handing Clifford's letter to Mrs. L'Estrange, who read it with surprise and regret. Many and varied were th conjectures of both as to what could possibly be the mysterious necessity which inwuenced Marsden; both coming, reluctantly, to the conclusion that money must be the root af the evil which was certainly Nora' good. (To be continued.) THIS CLIMATE OF OURS There I Never a Happy Medium Be tween Hoastlntc and Freezing;, Well, perhaps that little drop of thir ty degrees that came between Saturday and Sunday didn't cause a sensation.' exclaims the New York Recorder. Who believed that It would ever b cold again? I know of one misguided woman who, with a red face and shedding perspira tion at every pore, had staggered through the Saturday's heat piling up and salting down as it were the win ter clothes, and had, with the assist ance of a hot handmaid, carried them tc the tiptop floor and put them all away In an Inaccessible place. Then she crawled down, had the grates taken out of the rooms and sent down cellar; had the Iron frames pui in their places, and planned a little out of-town trip with hubby for Sunday. But when the cold awakening came on that morning this was what greeted her as she arose, shivering, from he! bed: "Say, what have yon done with mj thick tweed suit?" "Why, dearie. It's packed with cam ohor up In the attic" "For heaven's sake, don't tell dm thatl Well, I must put on my wlntei underwear again, then." "Oh, I'm so sorry, but that's all pack ed away up there, too." "Oh, of course. That's Just like woman!" "Why, George, you told me yoursell yesterday that we wouldn't have anj more cold weatherr "How could I have said such a thing. I'm not Dunn! Have a fire made in the dining room, then." "But the grates are all packed away, too!" "Well, Jumping Jingo!" "There's only the fire In the kitchen range." "Well, you don't expect me to go In there and sit in the dark, do you? Light the gas." So the gas was lit, and kept lit pretty nearly all day, but It wasn't really com fortable, for gas does smell gassy, you know. And how they wished for a cli mate where there was a medium state between linen dusters and fur over coats. The Charm, In years agone when he had not The flve-and-twenty cents. He watched the daily ball game through A knothole In the fence. Ho sits within the grand stand now And marvels much to know Why he sees not half of what he saw Through the knothole long ago. Detroit Tribune. Judge not thy associate until thou hast been placed in his position. Conquer a vice to-day and you save your descendants untold misery. The good which bloodshed could not gain your peaceful zeal shall find. A man who has no poor kin thinks it would be a pleasure to help them. The sufficiency of my merit is to know that my merit is not sufficient. There are people who say they would like to do good who don't smile once a week. Some men seem to have been made oat of dust that bad gravel in it. An evil deed will run a thousand miles; a good action does not look out of the door. A wise man reflects before he speaks, a fool speaks and then reflects on what he has uttered. Be not the fourth friend of him who bad three before and lost them. Old friends are best. He who increases the endearments of life increases at the same time the errors of death. It is a consolation when another man is In trouble to think that it will prove a valuable lesson to him. BE?. EG. TflLPSL rhe Brooklyn Divine's Sunday Sermon. Subject 'Gideon's Battle With the MIdiaiiltes." Tbtt; "And the three companions bleii the trumpets, and brake the pitchers, and held the lamps in their left hands and the trumpets in their right hands to blow withal And they stood every man in his p".wM round about the camp, and all the host rai anil cried and fled." Judges vii., 20, 21. That is the strangest battle ever fought. God had told Oideon to go down and thrust the Midianites. but his army is too large, foi the glory mnst be given to Goci and not tc man. And so proclamation is made that all those of the troops who are cowardly And want to go home may go, and 22,000 ol tbem scampered away, leaving only 10.00C men. But God says the army is toe large yet, and so he orders these 10.0041 remaining to march down through a stream and command Oideon to notice in what manner these men drink of the watei as they pass through it. If they got down on all fours and drink, then they are to be pronounced lazy and Incompetent for he campaign, but if, in parsing through th BtreHm, they scoop up the water in the pain: of their hand and drink ami pass on they an to he the men selei-ted for the battle. Well, the 10,000 men marched down in the stream, and the most of them come down on all fours and plunge their mouths like ahorse or an ox into the water and drink, but there are 300 men who, instead ot stooping, jus! clip the palm of their hands in the waterand bring it to their lips, "lapping it as a dog lapjieth." Those 300 brisk, rapid, en thusiasttc men are chosen for the campaign. They are each to take a trumpet in the right hand, and a pitcher in the left hand, and a lamp inside the pitcher, and then at a given signal they are to blow the trumpets, and throw down the pitchers, and hold up the lamps. So it was done. It is night. I see a great host of Midianitfti sound asleep in the valley of JezreeL Oid eon comes up with his 3O0 picked men. and when everything Is ready the signal is given and they blow trie trumpets, and they throw down the pitchers, and hold up the lamps, and the great host of Midianites, waking out of a sound sleep, take the crash of the crockery and the glare of the lamps for the ooming on of an overwhelming foe, and the3 run and cut theme elves to pieces and horri bly perish. The lessons of this subject are very spir ited and impressive. This seemingly value less lump of quartz has the pure gold in it. The smallest dewdrop on the meadow at night has a star sleeping in its bosom, and the most insignificant passage of Scripture has in it a shining truth. God's mint coins no small change. I learn in the first plae from this subject the lawfulness of Christian strategem. You know very well that the greatest victories ever gained by Washington or Napoleon were gained through the fact that they came when ami in a way tbey were not expected sometimes falling back to draw out the foe, sometimes breaking out from ambush, some times, crossing a river on unheard of rafts, all the time keeping the opposing forces in wonderment as to what would be done next. You all know what strategy is in military affairs'. Now I think it is high time we had this art sanctified and spiritualized. In the church, when we are about to make a Chris tian assault, we send word to the opposing force when we expect to come, how many troops we have, and how many round j 1 shot, and whether we will come with artil lery, infantry or cavalry, and of course we are defeated. There are thousands ol men who might be surprised into the king dom of Ood. We need more tact and ingen uity in Christian work. It is in spiritual affairs as in military, that success depemls in attacking that part of the castie which ia not armed and intrenched. For instance, here is a man all armed or the doctrine ot election. All his troops ol argument and prejudice are at that particu lar gate. You may batter away at that side of the castle for fifty years, and you will not take it, but jnst wheel your troops to the side gate of the heart's affections, and in five minutes you capture him. I never knew a man to be saved through a brilliant ar gumet. You cannot hook men Into the kingdom of God by the horns ot a dilemma. There is no grace in syllogisms. Here is a man armed on the subject of perseverance of the saints. He does not believe in it. Attack him at that point, and he will perse vere to the very last in not be lieving it. Here is a man armed on the subject of baptism. He believes in sprinkling or immersion. All your dis cussion of ecclesiastical hydropathy will not change him. I remember when I was a boy that with other boys I went into the river on a summer day to bathe, and we used to dash water on each other, but never got any re sult except that our eyes were blinded, and all this splashing of water between Baptists and Pedobaptists never results in anything but the blurring of the spiritual eyesight. In other words, you can never capture a mail's soul at the point at which he is especially intrenched. But there Is in every roun'a heart a bolt that can be easily shoved. A little child four years old may touch that bolt, and it will spring back, and the dooi will swing open, and Christ will come in. I think that the finest of all the fine arts ii the art of doing good, and yet this art is the least cultured. We have in the kingdom ol Ood to-day enough troops to conquer the whole earth for Christ if we only had skillful manceuvering. I would rather have the 80Q lamps and pitc hers of Christian strategem than 100,000 drawn swords of literary and Mclesiastioal combat. I learn from this subject also that a small part of the army of Ood will have to do all the hard fighting. Gideon's army was origin ally composed of 82,000 men. but they went off until there were only 10,000 left, and that was subtracted from until there were only 300. It is the same in all ages of the Chris tian church. A few men have to do the hard fighting. Take a membership of 1000, and you generally find that fifty people do the work. Take a membership of 5C0, and you generally find that ten people do the work. There are scores of churches where two or :bree people do the work. We mourn that there is so much useless lumber in the mountains of Lebanon. 1 think of the 10,000,000 membership of the Christian eburch to-day if 6,000,000 of the names were off the books the church would be stronger. You know that the more towards ind drones there are in any army the weaker it is. I would rather have the 300 picked men ot Gideon than the 32,000 unsifted host. The many Christians there are standing in the way of all progress! I think it is the duty of the church of Ood to ride over them, and the quicker it does it the quicker it does its duty. Do not worry, O Christian, if you have to do more than your share of the work. You had better thank God that He has called you to be one of the picked men rather than to belong to the host of stragglers. Would not vou rather be one of the 300 that fight than the 22,000 that run? I suppose those cow ardly Oideonites who went off congratu lated themselves. They said: "We got rid of all that fighting, did not weV How lucky we have ueem That battie costs us nothing at all." But they got none of the spoils of the victory. After the battle the 300 men went down aud took the wealth of the Midianites, and out of the cups and platters of their enemies they feasted. And the time will come, my dear brethren, when the hosts of darkness will be routed, and Christ will say to His troops: "Well done, my brave men. Go up and take the spoils. Be more than conquerors forever." And in that day all deserters will be shot. Again, 1 learn from this subject that God's way is different from man's, but is always the best way. If we had the planning of that battle, we would have taken those 32,000 men that originally belonged to the army, and we wonld have drilled them and marched tbem up and down by the day and week and month, and we would have had them equipped with swords or spears.accord. ins; to the way of arming in those times, and then we would have marched them down in solid column upon the foe. But that is not the way. Ood depletes the army, and takes away all their weapons.and gives them a lamp, and a pitoher, and a trumpet, and tells them to go down and drive oat ike AUdi&nite, I uddom some wiseacres were there who said: "That is not military tactics. The idea of 800 men un armed conquering such a great host of Mid ianites!" It was the best way. What sword, spear or cannon ever accomplished Buch a victory as the lamp, pitcher and trumpet? God's way is different from man's way, but it is always best. Take, for instance, the composition of the Bible. If we had bad the writing of the Bible, we would have said: "Let one man write it. It you have twenty or thirty men to write a poem, or make a statute, or write a history, or make an argu ment, there will be flaws and oontraiic lions." But Ood says: "Let not one man do It but forty men shall do it" And they did, differing enough to showthere had been ao collusion between them, but not oontra iictlng each other on any Important point, while they all wrote from their own stand point and temperament, so that the matter ot fact man has his Moses, the romantic na ture his Ezekiel, the epigrammatic, his Solo mon, the warrior his Joshua, the sailor his Tonnb, the loving his John, the logician his Paul. Instead of this Bible, which now can lift in my hand instead of the Bible the child can carry to Sunday-school, instead of the little Bible the sailor can put in his jacket when he goes to see, if it had been left to then to write it would have been thousand volumes, judging from th amount of ecclesiastical controversy which has arisen. God's way is different from man's, but it is best. Infinitely best. So it is in regard to the Christian's lire. If we had had the p'anning of a Christian's Jfe. we would have said: "Let him have sighty years of sunshine, a fine house to liva n. Let his surroundings all be agreeable. Let him have sound health. Let no chill mlver through his limits, no pain ache his brow or trouble shadow his soul." I Mijoy the prosperity of others so much I would let every man have as much money as he wants and rosea for his children's cheeks and fountains of gladness glancing in their large round eyes. But that is not God's way. It seems as if man must be cut, hit and pounded just in propor tion as he is useful. His child falls from a third story window and has its life dashed out. His most confident investment tumbles him into bankruptcy. His friends, on whom he depended, aid the natural force of gravitation in taking him down. His life is a Bull Run defeat. Instead of 32.000 advantages he has onlv 10,000. Aye, only 300 aye, none at all. How many good people there are at their wits' end about their livelihood, about their reputation? But they will find out it is the best way after iwhile. Ood will show them that He de pletes their advantages just for the samo Reason He depleted the army of Gideon ;hat they may be induced to throw them lelves on His mercy. A grapevine says in- the early spring' 'How glad I am to get through the winter! shall have no more trouble now. Summer weather will come, and the garden will be very beautiful." But the gardener comes jnd cuts the vine here and there with his knite. The twigs begin to fall, and the grapevine ories out- "Murder! What are you cutting me for?" "Ah," says the garden er, "I don't mean to kill you. If I did not do this, you would be the laughing stock of all the other vines before the season is over." Months go on, and one day the gardener eomes underthe trellis, where great Musters of grapes hang, and the grape vine lays: "Thank you, sir. You could not have lone anything so kind as to have cut me with that knife." "Whom the Lord loveth Be chasteneth." No pruning, no grapes; n) grinding mill, no flour; no battle, no vic tory; no cross, no orown. So Ood's way, in the redemption of the world, is different from ours. If we had our way, we would have had Jesus stand in the door ot heaven and beckon the Nations up to light, or we would have had angels flying iround the earth proclaiming the unsearch able riches of Christ. Why is it that the cause goes on so slowly? Why is it that the chains stay on when God oould knock them DAT? Why do thrones of despotism stand rhen God could so easily demolish them? It is His way in order that all generations, may co-operate and that all men may know tbey cannot do the work themselves. Just In proportion as these pyramids of sin go up in height will they come down in ghast liuess ot ruin. I learn from this subject that the ovorthron )f God's enemies will be sudden and terrific. There is the army of the Midianites down in he valley of jezreel. I suppose their mighty men are dreaming of victory. Mount Oil boa never stood sentinel for so large a host. The spears and the shields of the Midianites gleam in the moonlight and jtlauce on the eye of the Israelites, who hover like a battle of eagles, ready to swoop from the cliff. Sleep on, O army ot the Midianites! With the night to bide tbem and the mountain to guard them and strong arms to defend them, let no slumbering foe man dream of disaster. Peace to the cap :ains and the spearmen. Crash go the pitchers! Up flare the lamDs! To the mountains! Fly, fly! Troop running against troop, thousands trampling upon :nousands. Hark to the scream and groan ot the routed foe, with the Lord God Al mighty after them! How sudden the onset! How wild the consternation! How utter the defeat 1 I do not care so much what is against me if God is not. You want a better sword or carbine than I have ever seen to go sat and fight against the Lord Omnipotent. 3ive me Ood for my ally, and you may have all the battlements and battalions. I saw the defrauder in his splendid house. It seemed as if he had conquered God as he stood amid the blaze of chandeliers and pier mirrors. In the diamonds of the wardrobe t saw the tears of the widows whom he had robbed and in the snowy satins the pallor ot the white cheeked orphans whom he bad wronged. The blood of the oppressed glowed in the deep crimson of the im ported chair. The music trembled with the sorrow of unrequited toil. But the wave of mirth dashed higher on reefs of :oral aud pearl. The days and the nights went merrily. No sick child dared pull that silver doorbell. No beggar dared sit on that marble step. No voice of prayer floated amid that tapestry. No shadow of a judgment day darkened that fresco. Notearof human sympathy dropped upon that upholstery. Pomp strutted the hall, and dissipation filled her cup, and all seemed safe as the Midianites in the valley of JezreeL But God ;ame. Calamity smote the rioney market. The partridge left its agga unhatuhed. Crash went all the porcelain pitchers! Ruin, rout, dismay ami woe in the valley of Jezreel! Alas for those who fight against Ood I Only two sides. Man immortal, which side are you on? Woman immortal, which side are you on? Do yon belong to the 30 that are going to win the day or to the great host ot Midianites asleep in the valley, only to be roused up in consternation and ruin? Sud denly the golden bowl of life will be broken and the trumpet blown that will startle our soul into eternity. The day of the Lord cometh as a thief in the night and as the God armed Israelites upon the sleeping foe. Ha! Canst thou pluck up courage for the day when the trumpet which hath never been blown shall speak the roll call of the dead, and the earth, dashing against a lost meteor, have its mountains scattered to the stars and oceans emptied in the air? Oh, then, what will become of you? What will ecome of me? If those Midianites bad only given up :heir swords the day before the disaster, ail would have been well, and if you will now mrrender the sins with which you have been Jghting against God yon will be safe. Oh, make peace with Him now, through Jesus Christ the Lor.ll With the oiutoh of a drown ing man seize the cross. Ob. surrender! Surrender! Christ, with his hand on his Merced side, asks you to. Sixty-four Paperless Counties. There are sixty-four counties in Texas in which no papers are published. Reindeer as a rule are not very strong they can carry only forty or fifty pounds on their backs and draw from 950 to 300 pounds. A band of thieves frequent the un derground sewers in Naples, Italy, and bore their way into shops in order to rob tills and carry off goods, Trunk wires to connect London by telephone with Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dublin, have jnst been put by the English post office department. Mrs. Frank Behr. of Boauet Penn., gave birth to a child that weighs bnt two pounds and two ounces. The child is folly developed and doing weu. ME STOLE MILK. faok Avoided Itottoa for Terj IyOUK Time The milkman who supplied Bloom lold, N. J., families living in the neigh borhood of Lawrence and Barlow streets. Is happier than he was a week go. Bis customers suspected then that ho waa giving tbem short measure. Although he put In an extra gill as an svldunce of good faith, there was still a deficiency in many of the tin pails that were set out on the front stoops at night to await his coining In the early morning. The police were asked to find out wlu was rushing the lacteal growler. They tried to do so, but they failed. A few mornings ago the culprit was discov ered. The render might surmise by the appearance of his mouth and tongue, conspicuous In the picture, that he has capacity for milk In large quantities. lie Is a big Newfoundland dog, and he belongs to Mrs. Moffatt, who lives In Barlow street. Mrs. Moffatt waa looking out of the window early In the morning, when she saw Jack hiding be hind a dumb of bushes and with a most Interesting expression watching the milkman filling the tin pall on the stoop of the Kev. Mr. Winan's house. When the milkman left Jack trotted over to the stoop, picked up the pall with his teeth, carried It a short dis tance, set it down, took off the lid, and JACK. drank nearly all the milk. Then Be put on the lid and carried the pail back to the stoop. Mrs. Moffatt told the clergy man's family about It, and soon the neighbors and tho milkman all knew about the milk drinker. A NEW LAWN-MOWER. fho Inventor Claim) It Has Points of Advantage Over Old 6tyle. The lawn-mower here Illustrated was invented by a Pennsylvanian, and the lcinntiflc American thus describes it; The knives are driven by crank and pitman connection with the ground wheels, tho driving mechanician! belo. located entirely within the outer face Df the frame and there being no pro lections to collect the cut grass. The ixle carrying the ground wheels Is lournaled in depressions of the 6lde or !heek pieces of the frame, the wheels being cupped on their outer frame. The wheels are loosely mounted, and ratchet wheels on the axle adjacent to the hubs are adapted for engagement by a dog on each wheel, the dogs turn ing the axle when the mower Is pushed ihead and slipping over the ratchets SKW LHV MOWER. when iho mower is drawn backward, tb cutting mecbanisin being then inop erative. In each of the side pieces is a horiiontal depression ot well having near its center an opening. The shaft of the cutter !s Jourraled lr the Inner walls of the wells, 9 ml ou the shaft are spiders which cany the spiral cutting knives, extending from the In ner face of one side piece to the inner face of the other side piece, the knives being thus protected from obstacles at the sides of the machine and adapted to 'nit a swath of nearly Its full width. A NEW EYE-SHADE. It Mar B Keadily and Conveniently Attached to tbe 8pecta.de Frerac. The accompanying illustration shows I device recently Invented by a man ut West, by which the Inconvenlenco f the ordinary eyeshade Is done away irith. The shade Is made of light, flexible material, and Is curved to tit lie fore- VEW XTK-SHA'BB. tead of the wearer. It may b readily ittaohed to the frame of the spectacles ly means of wires provided for that sirpose. An Adventnroua Fellow. A young man named Bennett has p'.it lis btcyole to profitable use In the Aus tralian gold fields by establishing with It postal rout between Coolgardle, the canter of the mining district, and Dundee, which Is two hundred aud ighty miles away. Strapped on the wheel Is a small letter-box. In which he carries letters between the two towns for a shilling a piece and tele grams for fire shilMngs, making one round trip a week. A revolver, a iharp knife, and a water bottle con Wtea the rttat of the outfit Tor the life of me I cannot see why aeople think It so comical a tb'ng for i maa to get married,' complained the 'onng man who was on his bridal tour. 'Nor me, neither," remarked the paa enger with the white whiskers. "An' . may state furder that I been marrt waive years," Cincinnati Enquirer. Some people who pass In their eheeks HETUWN FROM ELBA. ne Want Wild When Napoleoa' Came Back Again. Philip met the truth at Lyons. The; air was full of rumors that speedily bet bame facts. With less than a thousand of his grenadiers his "brave growl era," as he sometimes called them the Emperor had landed in France. The army had gone over to him, wild with Joy. The Empire would be pro claimed once more. France would bf free of the Bourbons. Philip found Lyons in a ferment. Na poleon waa almost at Its gates. The Bourbon prince who commanded the troops In that Important city ordered bis soldiers to the walls to repel ot capture "the bandit from Elba." But what was a Bourbon prince beforv "our Emperor?" The tidings of the Imperial adven turer came thick and fast. Napoleon had landed near Cannes; he had marched over the mountains to Dijon; he had first fronted the white stand ard with his tricolor at I-afTrey; with bared breast he had faced the soldlen of the King In the Vale of Beaumont bidding them welcome or kill him; and behold! the soldiers of the King had fallen on their knees before him, cried "Long live the Emperor!" and hailed him as their "father." ne had kissed the restored eagles at Vlzllle; he bad entered Grenoble, through the gate burst open by the peasants wlthoul and the revolted soldiers within; es corted by mountaineers and farmert singing the Marseilles Hymn, he ad vanced from Grenoble to Lyons with his little "army of deliverance" already grown from one thousand to six thou sand soldiers waving the trlcolored cockade. Off hurries the BourboE prince In terror of his life; down go th barricades, wrecked by the very sol diers who had piled them up; "Long live the Emperorl" shout garrison and citizens; and to the accompaniment ol twenty thousand welcoming voices Na oleon enters Lyons. St Nicholas. The Child's Mind. Child Instruction should In the first Instance proceed upon the principle that the young mind Is an Incalculable possibility, and that schooling should be of a character to carry that possi bility Just as far as may be toward its realization, writes the Rev. Charles H. Parkhurst, D. D., in the Ladies' Home Journal. The child's mind Is as thick ly etudded with Interrogation points as the sky Is with stars. The primary genius of a child Is the genius for ask ing questions. There is a natural affin ity between the mind and the truth. Inqulsltiveness Is as natural to Intelli gence as hunger is to the stomach. One of the most common effects of current schooling Is to destroy that affinity. In tellectual stuffing in the nursery or Id the schoolroom Is worse and more wick ed than gluttony In the dining-room. Children who commence going to school when they are 6 and continue at It until they are 18 hate knowledge a good deal worse than they do sin, and if they had the courage of their Impuls es would assassinate their instructors and practice nihilism on their school rooms and text-books. The distinct symptoms of nihilism are discernible In every schoolroom that has been used for educational purposes more than six months. This intellectual demoraliza tion of the schoolroom will pursue Its present course till teachers are select ed who have enough of the genius of Froebel to understand that the mental constitution of the child is Itself de scriptive of the course to be followed In its development, and that the proper office of school commissioners and school committees Is to help the teach er carry out the Intentions ot nature rather than to compel him to embap rass and controvert those Intentions. can't Convict Slave Dealers. The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children will not attempt to prosecute the Chinese who sold little Ah Soo Into slavery, although there Is a dry ordinance which forbids the traffic in human flesh, and makes it punishable as a misdemeanor. "It Is utterly usehss to attempt iij prosecution in this case," said Secre tary MeComp yesterday. "Our Inform ant and all our witnesses are Chinese, and they have told us that If called on to go into court and testify they must disclaim all knowledge of the matter. This Is because they fear assassination at the hands of the highbinders, and as a matter of fact we recognize that In case they did testify, their lives would not be worth an Instant's pur shase." Special Officer Frank Holbrook holds similar views. Some years ago he was Instrumental In rescuing thirty-two white children from Chinatown slav ery. One woman was convicted of Fell ing her child Into slavery and was given six months In jail, but in that case there was a white witness who knew the circumstances. San Frnn tlsco Call. Good. Greenbacks In Bad Company. Charles M. Burks, one of the city policemen, hit a streak of luck a few days ago that was worth to him f 120. Be found that much money In a box of old Confederate bills that his father had owned before his death. The old gentleman was quite well-to-do, and lived on a fine farm In Troup County, Be had a box full of Confederate money that waa on hand when the war closed. Be laid the box away, considering Its contents worthless. He died In 1878, and the box was left to his children. Some time ago Mr. Burks sister sent the box to him from her home down In Troup County. In counting over the; money he came across several "bills that looked like good money to hi :o hi mi of thi don or Mr. Burks went to J. 0. Dayton State Savings Bank for an opinion the money. Mr. Dayton told Mi Burks that he thought the bills wen good, and that be wonld cash tbem II they were not In such had company Mr. Dayton proposed that the bills bi tent to the treasury at Washington, tt which Mr. Burks consented. The were sent last Friday, and Wednesday Mr. Dayton received from the treasury a letter Inclosing a check for $120. M Barks still ha 944.000 la Confederal money la that old box, which he woul be glad to exchange fee checks A4 (MJ tew CULTIVATION OF RAMIE. a Recent Invention Will Make Its Production I'rofltuble. The agitation of the subject of culti ratlon of ramie, a member of the nettle family, In the Southern States has re vived a new impetus from the inven tion, by a New Orleans man, of a decor ticating machine, which promises to revolutionize the methods of preparing the fiber of this plant for use In the manufacture of cloth as radically as the I0P OF WHITE BAMIE, SHOWING SEEPS. methods of separating cotton liber were revolutionized by Whitney's great in vention of the cotton gin in ante-bellum days. It is reported that practical tests of the new machine, the invention of S. B. Allison, have already demonstrated its effectiveness, and tho newspapers are paying great attention to all cur rent developments In the case. Bore are some of the products made of ramlo: Ropes and cables that ex ceed the strength of manllla hemp; table cloths that excel tho gloss of Irish linen; lace thnt equals the delicacy of cotton and surpasses its durability; plushes that rival the luster of sealskin; velvets, damasks and brocades whose exquisite finish embarrasses a further advancement in textile art. Itarato is combined with cotton, linen, wool nnd silk, and It always adds to the mixed BAMIE BOWS, SIX FEET 11 Hi II. texture an element of greater useful ness and beauty. In handkerchiefs, cravats and hosiery. In cambrics, cam lets and shawls, in alpacas, carpets and draperies, it Is, with tlieTossihle excep tion of silk, superior to the fibers with which it Is Interwoven. The decorticating machines. If ns suc cessful as is claimed, solve the last re maining problem of the remunerative culture and manufacture into fabrics of ramie. How to Carry Money. A man is safe from pickpockets 11 fie c irries his money in Ins truuserj liockets says an experienced detectr ive. A hip pocket i simply a delu sion The breast pocket is no safer when the coat is !uitned, le -.iu-a the uia who is aft' r the money lo. cated there lias only to slit the tioih with a sharp little knilc-biude sei in a riim. tarry your money in yom right trousers pocket and you wilj never have it picked. As for jewelry, when in a rrowd twist your watch chain around yout left thumb or iml'-x tinker, ana don't let go, no matter what tui pens, Vou are lucky if you wear a diamond p'n foi a year, no matter what safety at tachment it has. .some chap will even cut oil a portion of your neck tie to get it. ileware of rushes people ijuietly knocking against you, etc. IT a man fa Is airaiiist you. el bow hira olf or step aside, in a crowd let them knock jour hat olT or smash it over v-oiir eyes, but dou't throw uo your bands. "What a Wreck"' At a dinner-party at Co wood. Canon f.owles, then past sixty, was ititr-j-fluced to au elderly lady, with whom he sat chattini: pleasantly about tliinn-! of the day. How cs was per lectly oblivious that this was the very lady to whom be had been engaged to be married when he had very little Income besides his curacy. The lady, of course, was perTec'y well aware that she was talking to her quondam lover; but ber married name had in no way enlightened tim as to her personality. After a time she said, having touched upon old days: "But, Mr. Howies, dou't you remember me?" 'No, ma'am, 1 don't" Then she added, smiling: "Vou used to know me and pretend to be very fond of me. I was Miss " "Oh, what a wreck!" was the spontaneous ex c amation of the poet. Happily the lady enjoyed the joke Immensely, for she was a remarkably han dsome wo man for ber ae, and bis burst ol burpri-e was really only a compliment to the extreme beauty of her joutu. The Paris exposition of 1900 is to cost 20,0(10,000, and will cover an area of nearly 2000 acres. German East Africa's future is as sured. Alluvial gold and diamonds have been found in Usambara, At Helensville, Wis., recently a number of cows attacked a turtle. basking in the sun and ki Ued it. Amos Holmes, Uuandilla, N. Y., ninety four years old, claims to be the oldest bicycle rider in 2ew York State. For scientific purposes it is pro posed to fly ten giant kites to the height of two miles daring every pos sible phase of weather. ill iku 'i! I ! --4 If ; 4 ' i ! n-.e.